True to his word, Grubbs tweeted about Cain’s 9:45 appearance at a cafe here on Monday. But the event isn’t listed on Cain’s website, nor was a press announcement sent to usual recipients.

Accordingly, Cain arrived to a 200-person crowd made up largely of media. Journalists make up a sizable chunk of Grubbs’ Twitter followers.

“First of all, I am thrilled that so many of you have come out for this impromptu stop at the restaurant,” Cain said. “The state of Iowa is gonna set the tone for this upcoming primary season.”

Any Iowans expecting the Georgia businessman to clarify or expound on the sexual harassment charges or even Cain’s blundering answer yesterday to a question about Libya in his 25-minute stop were left wanting. Cain mostly shook hands and signed autographs.

So much of the 2012 primary campaign has been a nationalized race driven by free media and debate appearances, that the comparative derth of retail politicking in Iowa and New Hampshire hasn't become an issue. That may chance in the coming weeks, and could impact people like Cain, who's not a particularly known quantity to early-state voters beyond his name ID and his "9-9-9" plan.